Concession, per se, is entirely optional, and a candidate will sometimes refuse to concede defeat despite the vote count being against them, especially if they suspect electoral fraud. In that case the candidate would likely demand a recount of the votes or other investigations into the alleged fraud. Sometimes concession may be denied not because of any specific fraud allegations, but simply because of ill will accumulated over the campaign. It is not necessary for the losing candidate to concede in order for the winning candidate to be seated, nor is the losing candidate obliged to concede once it has been conclusively demonstrated that they lost.

If the vote is relatively close, it can be unclear when it is appropriate for a losing candidate to concede an election. On election night, pressures from a media looking for news to report, an opposition campaign anxious to declare victory, and one's own campaign unwilling to concede defeat if there is any hope of a last-minute turnaround all weigh on the decision of the losing candidate. Though a spoken concession does not necessarily deny a candidate office if there is a drastic reversal in the vote count, it does practically prevent demands for recount.

In the broadcast age, the concession speech of a candidate for high office reaches a wide audience, and is seen as the final swan song of a lost campaign. Out of courtesy, the winner of the campaign usually waits for a concession speech (if one is forthcoming) before delivering their own acceptance speech.

A losing candidate usually thanks their supporters for their valiant efforts, and points to the non-electoral successes of the campaign in building party strength and raising issues to attention that would not otherwise be in public discussion. It is also traditional, unless the campaign has been exceptionally bitter, to congratulate the winning candidate and wish them well in office, perhaps even offering a parting word of advice.